Improved railway-car wheel



A. C. FLETCHER.

Car Wheel.

PatentedMarch 23 1869,

Wz'l'n eases N. PETERS. PhotcrLithographar, Washington. D. c.

a f finder fitment ADDISON C. FLETCHER, OF NEW,Y.ORK,'N. Y.

Letters Patent No. 88,154, dated 'March 23, 1869.

IMPROVED RAILWAY-CAR WHEEL.

The schedule referred to in those Letters Patent and making part of the same.

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, Anmson O. FLETCHER, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Oar-Wheels, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being bad to the accompanying drawing, forming part of this specification, and in which Figure 1 represents a face view of my improved carwheel, with me of the side, or body-plates removed;

Figure 2, a transverse section of said wheel through the line a at in fig. 1; and

- Figure 3, a similar view through the line z 2.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

7 My invention consists in apculiar construction of elastic car-wheel, by a freely-clamped arrangement of the rim-portion of the wheel between side, or bodyplates and hub, havinginterposed between them independent springs of a novel character, and constructed to provide for the resistance of strain or pressure in various directions.

Referring to the accompanying drawing- A represents the rim-portion of the wheel, made up of a tire, or tread-part, a, and interior annular flange b, which latter is clamped, in a free manner, between the outer edges of side, or body-plates B B, bolted together, as at c c, and constructed to form a hub, d.

Fitted in between these plates B B, is any desired number of independent springs, G 0, preferably of the form represented in the drawing, and which spring is the subject of a separate application for patent made by me.

These springs are of metal, and of a divided, hooplike character, having their mo nths, or lips e e arranged to occupy an outer and radial position, with their interior sides converging inwardly, while a stud, or projection, f j, on the backs of the springs, is made to enter recesses formed in the hub d of the wheel.

. The interior flange-portion b of the rim has wedgelike projections g g on its inner edge, arranged to snugly fitbetween the lips e e of the metallic spring 0 0, so

wheel travels, by, or through the gear of the wedges g g, with end-pressure of them against and on the lips e e, to open and spread them; also, by the pressure of the inner ends of said wedges against rubber fillings h h, to the springs which stifi'en and strengthen the latter, and-cushion their action.

There may also be rubber strips, it, for a like purpose, arranged on the outsides of the springs, between them and blocks is It, made fast to the body-plates.

A sectional elastic car-wheel, thus constructed, provides, in a most eflicient manner, for distribution of the strain consequent on-deflection over a series of springs in constantly-varying directions, without prej udicially affecting the solidity of the wheel, and combines strength with convenience of replacing the rimportion only when worn, and, if desired, of dispensing with a tire, by forming it of steel, while the central portion is of cast or wrought-iron.

What is here claimed, and desired to be secured by Letters Patent, is-

An elastic car-wheel, formed of an independent rimportion, A, side, or body-plates B B, arranged to freely clamp an interior flange, b, of the rim, and carryingin between them independent springs O O, constructed to carry and divide the strain consequent on deflection of the rim in various directions, relatively to the ground, or rail-surfaces on which the wheel travels, substantially as specified.

ADDISON C. ELETOHER. Witnesses:

J. W. Ooonns, FRED. Hams. 

